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The Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination (LISD) at Princeton University was established in 2000 through the generosity of H.S.H. Prince Hans Adam II of Liechtenstein. It is housed in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and serves both the purpose of an academic institute, as well as a think tank. The Institute was founded by Wolfgang F. Danspeckgruber, a lecturer in public and international affairs at the Woodrow Wilson School.

Mission and Outreach

The Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination at Princeton University, LISD, supports teaching, research, publication and negotiation about issues pertaining to the state, self-determination, self-governance, sovereignty, security, and boundaries with particular consideration of sociocultural, ethnic, and religious issues; and related legal, diplomatic, socio-cultural, economic, strategic, and environmental matters involving state as well as non-state actors.

The Institute’s focus is global, nonpartisan, and innovative. LISD seeks to enhance peace and stability by contributing to the understanding of the root causes of a people’s desire for increased autonomy or independence, while reducing the tumultuous and potentially violent processes that can occur in times of transition. The Institute does this by bringing together practitioners, experts, and decision-makers to explore conflicts from cultural-religious, economic, and geostrategic perspectives, in order to find new solutions to current and traditional problems, and by educating the next generation of leaders. The institute also sponsors publications of relevant studies, policy reports, and books.

Special colloquia have been held as part of the Institute’s major projects on the Balkans, Central and South Asia, i.e. dealing with Problems in Afghanistan, Iran, Kosovo, the Former Soviet Union, and Kashmir. Some conferences are private and off-the-record, in order to allow senior representatives of the public and private sector, scholars, experts and diplomats to engage in meaningful and open discussions to find innovative solutions. This work has resulted in several publications including edited volumes and United Nations GA/SC documents. All such colloquia are administered by student assistants of LISD.

Public lectures, sponsored by LISD, have brought a diverse group of experts and diplomats from around the world to Princeton University, to share their work with students, faculty, and members of the University and local communities.

LISD puts premium attention on education. Princeton University graduate and undergraduate students are involved with all aspects of LISD projects, from planning meetings to administering conference, to participating in diplomatic discussions. Invited senior practitioners and experts lecture and teach, possibly alone or with LISD faculty associates, or participate in LISD Seminars. This all represents a central part of the Institute’s commitment to training the next generation of leaders.

Current LISD projects focus on Afghanistan and its neighbors, on the Balkans, Central Asia, the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Conduct of Crisis Diplomacy, and the creation of the Princeton e-Encyclopedia of Self-Determination.

LISD in the News
, by Thomas Seifert. Die Presse, 5.12.2007

, by Thomas Seifert, "Die Presse", 16.03.2007